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Tag: Things I Know

The difference a year can make

Where were you 12 months ago? The Bloke in the Shed and I were doing this excruciating 6km community walk the other day – excruciating for me; a leisurely stroll for him – when he piped up with: “I couldn’t have done this a year ago?’’.

He’s right. He would have been struggling to complete it, if it wasn’t for taking on a personal trainer 18 months ago and having dropped a significant amount of weight. He now does 10-12km runs every night – without breaking a sweat. I know. Makes you sick, doesn’t it?

Janelle, his trainer, is a huge motivator for him. She’s lost 90kg (that’s two of me) and is a totally different person to who she was a few years ago. She’s also a mum. Like Julian, her kids become the catalyst to get healthy.

It’s made me think about how far I’ve come in 12 months (which might be interesting to look back on in another year). Here are some of the things I was struggling with then:

THEN: I swore I was going to turn into ol’ black eyes rocker Jon English from the effects of sleep deprivation and, like Jon English, it would last forever. I was still getting up at least once during the night – on a good night.
NOW: I’m like a frizzy-mopped child getting their hair brushed if one of the girls wakes before 6.30am. It’s strictly non-stop 7pm to 7am sleep here now.

THEN: Managing two to three business clients on my own and dreaming one day I’d be drinking pina colada’s from my private island home (ah, too many Richard Branson books, maybe). At one point, maybe six months ago, I contemplated shutting the business down.
NOW: I’m writing a book, have two exceptional team members on board the business, a list of super talented clients, doing public speaking/sessions on blogging and social media, gaining media attention and more exciting opportunities coming up in the near future. Still working on the island though…

THEN: Holly was about to turn one and was totally dependent on me – still couldn’t walk, unable to really communicate what she wanted and I was having to feed two mouths at once at meal times.
NOW: Holly is about to turn two and can walk; never stops talking (and singing the full lyrics to High School Musical); does dance concerts with her sister in the lounge room; has developed an incredibly cheeky personality, complete with selective hearing; can feed herself; is starting to toilet train; and has a strong group of little friends she’s close to. Best of all, her and Ella are now able to play properly together, leaving me in peace to unpack the dishwasher.

THEN: Blogging every day, struggling to come up with unique topics, putting an incredible amount of pressure on myself and watching my stats like my life depended on it. Apparently, it doesn’t. Phew for that!
NOW: I blog 2-3 times a week – either when I feel like writing or have something to say. OK, so let’s be honest, I just don’t have the time for daily blogging anymore (says she who’s doing a #BlogFor30 challenge on her other blog). I rarely look at my stats but, when I do, it seems this space is continually growing without any great effort. I also seem to be falling into collaborative opportunities, including with the recent Mum Blogging Masterclass and now via a group of bloggers I’ve long admired who work together to help each other – and our readers.

It’s amazing the difference a year can make. Imagine what another 12 months will bring. Let’s hope it’s: getting fitter and healthier (time to curb the chocolate habit), finding a better work/life balance (some days are harder than others) and having an updated wardrobe (seriously, there’s only so much white, cream and pink one person should legally have).

Where were you 12 months ago? Where do you want to be in 12 months? Are you actively working towards it?

September 7, 2012
Lessons For Wives No 5: Sexy Legs? No, it’s UGG-ly

By The Bloke in The Shed

I KNOW there is a new scourge emerging on Tasmanian streets as summer approaches. It needs to be stamped out and this is not just a crime against humanity, it’s a crime against good taste.

Some of you may remember the infamous Bras are for Boobs post on this site where I revealed the horrifying emerging trend of women using their mammary cradles as mobile phone holders. That post drew plenty of comments and plenty of traffic (albeit some of it looking for perhaps a little more than what the post offered).

Now, like that bra lesson, methinks that very few wives are guilty of this latest sin. In fact, I’d go as far as suggesting these latest sinners are single ladies or those who go out with blokes who wear their peaked caps to the side, have their favourite dirt bike brand stickered on their back window and feature numerous misspelled words tattooed on various parts of their beings.

Okay, that out of the way, what is this new crime? When in the heck did it become okay to wear very high cut, skimpy shorts with knee-high ugg boots? Seriously, maybe you might be able to get away with it at home, but in the main street of town in the middle of the day? I’m not sure I’ve seen a better case for the return of corporal punishment.

It’s like the women (okay, mostly teenage girls) can’t decide whether it’s warm enough or not outside so they have five bucks each way. Having been a fan of the ugg boot over the years, in the right environment, this seemingly growing fad must be nipped in the bud before it gets out of hand lest it damage the lambs-wool shoes’ brand irreparably.

Please, for the good of humankind, say no to ugg-ly shorts combos.

Have you witnessed this fashion disaster? Or are you brave enough to admit you’re part of the trend?

Read more from The Bloke in The Shed

Linking up Shae from Yay for Home’s Things I Know. Make sure you click to learn what others’ know.

December 9, 2011
Singing a Christmas carol with my daughter seven years on

IF YOU missed yesterday’s laugh, I mean post, you would have missed the original Christmas song I wrote and recorded all the way back in 2004. It’s a cracker. Or it will crack you up, one of the two.

Anyway, yesterday Princess Ella and I decided to recruit some help and tackle one of our all-time favourite Christmas carols, Silent Night – a capella. Of course, I should have already known trying to get two Zhu Zhus and a four-year-old giggling girl to cooperate would be challenging, but this is the end result:

I know the Zhu Zhus would have been better stuffed into a bag for all the help they provided with harmonies. Actually, to be honest, they’re not a bad idea if you’re looking for a stocking filler. Well, that’s what Ella will find in hers, anyway.

Apologies for the quality of the video and that darn date in the corner. First attempt at recording via the laptop! Yes, welcome to amatuer hour.

Are your children obsessed with Christmas carols as much as mine is at the moment?

Linking up Shae from Yay for Home’s Things I Know. Make sure you click to learn what others’ know.

DISCLOSURE: I am a Zhu-Fari mummy blogger ambassador.

December 2, 2011
A thrifty way to travel – our Melbourne holiday with kids

WHEN I say thrifty, I’m talking about Thrifty Car Rental, which set us up with the Black Beast during our family holiday to Melbourne last week. They gave us a roomy Ford Falcon XR6 (it was meant to be a Hyundai i45, but I’m starting to get over that), a GPS (which was introduced to some rather colourful language from The Bloke in The Shed), a fuel card (yet we didn’t even use half a tank!) and they took care of my tolls (when asked what tollways we used we just shrugged our shoulders. There are no tollways in Tasmania. In Tassie, we’ll pay you to use our roads).

As part of this post, I thought I’d show you where the Black Beast took us to inspire you on your next Melbourne visit. Digital Parents Conference, anyone?

You’d think this post would start with a lovely family photo of us standing around the Black Beast, right? Well, unfortunately the Beast was a tad camera shy. Or, quite possibly, we forgot to actually take a photo in all the excitement. Instead, here’s a photo I stole from Ford.

And now, here’s what I know about what to do with kids in Melbourne:

Thursday:

At the Melbourne airport we picked up the Black Beast from the Thrify Car Rental desk, completely fitted out with blue child car seats, in what was a no-fuss experience and headed straight for… shopping. We’ve taken in most DFOs and shopping precincts and the relatively new South Wharf DFO has been among the best. In the afternoon we princesses spent some downtime in our perfectly located hotel, Medina Executive South Yarra. The Bloke in The Shed took to the hotel gym. Our two-bedroom unit was incredibly roomy and Ella was chuffed at her BIG bed. We were surprised by how close it was to everything we needed access to, including the Royal Botanic Gardens. We had a picnic dinner with the Claire family, with so much space in the gardens it’s hard not to find a secluded spot for yourself.

Friday:

While the Kids Business Bloggers Brunch was only a few blocks from our hotel, the GPS went into a tizz when it tried to take us down a few closed streets. Thankfully, with the temperature reaching 34 degrees, the Black Beast’s air con prevented us from going into a tizz. Once I finally arrived at my Prahran destination, The Bloke in the Shed and the two princesses headed to the air-conditioned Melbourne Museum. While hubby said the children’s area was good, Princess Ella (4) was apparently more interested in the general section. In the afternoon, the Beast lured us to Prahran Market where I fell in love. And I’m not talking about the fact we saw Russell Gilbert. The array of food – and the quality – was too much temptation. It’s not the sort of thing you’d spend a lot of time at, especially with kids, but if you’ve got the ability to cook in your hotel it’s well worth it. That night we dined at a café on Toorak Rd.

Saturday:

We detoured via St Kilda (yay GPS!) to pick up my brother and then headed straight to the Melbourne Zoo. You can read the full review about how much we enjoyed ourselves. That night we over indulged on the yummy delights we’d picked up at the Prahran Market.

Sunday:

Our flight left at 8.30am, so we preprogrammed the airport into the GPS the night before. At the airport carpark, Ella turned to me and said: “Can we take our car home with us, Mum?’’. Sure, why not. I’ll pack it in with our luggage (which had already reached its limit after the Bloggers Brunch goodies). As we headed out of the terminal to board our Qantaslink flight, it felt like all the spoils of our holiday were now behind us. Then we were presented with the above Dash 8. Yes, a pink one. Ella, again, thought the airport had turned it on especially for her. We’re not about to ruin her fun.

What would you recommend we do next time we visit Melbourne?

Linking up Shae from Yay for Home’s Things I Know. Make sure you click to learn what others’ know.

DISCLOSURE: We received a car, GPS and fuel card from Thrifty Car Rental. We received a two-bedroom room at Medina Executive South Yarra at a media rate. All opinions expressed are my own.

November 25, 2011
Behold the chatterbox

Butter wouldn't melt in their mouths – probably because they can't keep their mouths still long enough.

I KNOW that the visual of a woman with a telephone in one hand, head nodding, arm flailing and mouth flapping at a 100 miles an hour first starts to take shape about age one. I also know that when Zoey from GoodGoog sent out the tweet: “ The child is trying to kill me by continuous talking and never stopping EVER’’, I felt a huge amount of empathy for her.

With a one-year-old and four-year-old princess, I already have a chatterbox in each ear going from about 6.30am until 7pm EVERY day. I’ve learnt to just nod and say “that’s nice, darling’’ every minute and a half. Although, that often fails because every second sentence from the four year old is often a question.

The following incident then happened yesterday, which I know just reinforced my fate.

Princess Ella trailed behind me as I took Little Holly into the nursery for her morning nap. Ella knows she’s not allowed in there while I’m trying to put her to bed. She usually only hypes her sister up by singing and playing peek-a-boo, none of which help Holly settle.

On this day, instead of leaving when I asked, she popped herself up into the feeding chair and began the following dialogue:

“I’m a big girl now, aren’t I, Mum? I’m allowed in here, because I can be really quiet, can’t I, Mum? I won’t say anything. See? I’m being quiet. I’m a good girl.’’ And it went on.

I rest my case.

Do you have chatterboxes? What are your coping mechanisms?

Linking up Shae from Yay for Home’s Things I Know.

October 28, 2011
Launching My Tasmanian Backyard series
I KNOW that it’s about time I started promoting Tasmania a little more and what to do with your kids while in this beautiful state. Sure, we have big things – the Big Penguin at… Penguin, the Big Apple at Spreyton, the Big Coffee Pot at Deloraine, the Big Platypus at Latrobe, the Big Spud at Sassafras (more interesting than it sounds) and the Big Tasmanian Devil at Mole Creek (well, we are Tasmanian). There are, however, no Big Two-Headed People. Sorry to disappoint you.

However, there’s much more to this State. I’ve had an idea for about six months to do a tourism-related series targeted at families with small children. So, I finally decided I’d do something about it this week. I know I want to:
- Provide more review-based information for families looking for things to do and places to stay with their kids, written by a fellow mum;
- Give Tasmanian parents some inspiration on what to do with their children each week;
- Create a place for tourists to find family-orientated activities, accommodation, events and attractions when they’re planning their trip;
- Introduce those unfamiliar with this beautiful State to what’s on offer (hopefully we may just lure you here for a holiday. Let me know when you arrive and we’ll have coffee. Your shout.);
- A reference of events for this time next year.
So with the trademark Three Li’l Princesses humour, we will each week show you a little of what we have in all corners of this State, but especially the North-West, West and North. There’s also a downloadable Tasmanian family focused events calendar in the pipeline.

If you have a specific question or place you want to know about, feel free to drop us a line in the comment section or contact us. Likewise if you have an event you’d like promoted in the calendar or an activity, accommodation place, event or attraction you would like considered for the series. The My Tasmanian Backyard page has been created where all the reviews and the calendar will be kept for easy access.

The first post will appear on Tuesday. If you’re like me and you won’t remember that, make sure you subscribe in the top right hand corner of the homepage or follow us on Facebook or Twitter.

I know I love looking in other people’s backyards. What about you? Do you have a favourite place in Tasmania?

Linking up Shae from Yay for Home’s Things I Know.
October 21, 2011